Feast of St. James, Apostle

Walking by the Sea of Galilee, Jesus saw James and John, the sons of Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them to follow him. We celebrate today the feast of the apostle James, one of the first four followers of Jesus and a member of the perceived “inner” circle of Jesus. Together with his brother John and Peter, James was present during some notable moments in the life and ministry of Jesus. He witnessed the raising of the daughter of Jairus [Mark 5:21-43], was present at the Transfiguration [Matthew 17:1-2], and was also present in the garden of Gethsemane as Jesus agonized over his impending execution [Matthew 26:37-46]). James was condemned to death by king Herod Agrippa I and was beheaded in the year 42.
Although James became the first apostles to suffer martyrdom, we can assume that it was not something that came to them as a surprise. It was a fate that each and every member of the early Church faced. In today’s Gospel passage, we see Jesus “promising” James and John (and in essence all those who chose to follow him) a share in his cup of suffering (martyrdom). Because of the cause for which the Christian movement was founded, those who chose to follow Jesus had to be prepared for the challenges that would come their way. The challenges would come to them, not because Christianity is a narcissistic, but rather as a result of them standing firm on their resolve to preach the message of the kingdom. This is also the content of St. Paul’s message to the Corinthians in the First Reading. St. Paul reminds the Corinthian community that as Christians they have been called to live the life of Jesus Christ, a life that is characterized by thanksgiving to God even in the midst of suffering and death.
St. James was ready to give his life for Christ and his message. He finally came to understand what Jesus had meant by sharing in his cup. Together with his brother John – and with the backing of their mother- he had sought a share in the glory of Jesus Christ. While it might be that at the time of their request James might have had other ideas of what glory constitutes, he later came to clearly understand what it was all about. And even after getting to understand that it did not exclude suffering even to the point of death, he did not back out. He still embraced it to the end.
The important thing which we learn from those who were martyred for their faith is not how they “carried the death of Jesus in their bodies but rather how they were able to manifest the life of Jesus Christ in their mortal, dying bodies” (cf. 2 Corinthians 4:10). The martyrs knew what they were facing; they were not naïve. They were aware that the message they were proclaiming would lead to them being rejected and condemned by the authorities (cf. Matthew 10:22). But they also understood that suffering to the extent of dying for a good cause was itself a gain. If they were to face persecution for preaching equality and sharing, then it was worth it. At any rate, they had come to understand suffering and death not as an enemy but rather as something to be embraced.